August 30

Gaston County Beekeepers Association

Below are my notes from tonight’s meeting.  Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.

August 29, 2017 – Monthly Meeting

  • We all need to put our entrance reducers on our hives, especially if you are feeding.  Remember we should be using a 2:1 (Sugar to water ratio) in our hives as we enter fall.
  • 26 Beekeepers used the Association’s honey extraction room
  • Preparation for next year’s mentoring program and Bee School for 2018
  • Looking for a new president and treasure for the coming year.
  • Christmas Party needs to be planned.  December 12, Tuesday night at 6:00.  Will be catered by Sports Page.  $15 per person unless costs are greater.  Kids 12 and under are free.  (Think I will bring Jax)
  • Need door prizes for this event (Irene and Joe?)
  • Syllabus for Bee School is being developed.  Need instructors for this school.  Also need support staff as well as mentors.
  • Committee meetings are the second Tuesday of each month.  7:00 PM.  All are welcome to attend
  • Food for the Apiaries
  • Cotten Ginning Days – want us to build a period display to tel the public about bees.  We will have two displays including this new one and the demo we have been having.  The design of this period demo area is pending.  Cotten Ginning Days will be on October 13 – 15.
  • Sepyember 26 – Regular Monthly Meeting – Election of Officers and Honey Tasting Contest.  Entries must be turned in at the Extension Office here in Dallas (8 oz) with category and name.  (Must be turned in by September 25.  Liquid Honey – light or dark  and whipped honey plain or flavored.

Fall Management and Overwintering Strategies

Honey Bee Health Coalition:  www.honeybeehealthcoalition.com

This website is a rich resource with tons of information on what to look for and how to treat.  Includes videos showing you what to look for and how to treat.

 

  • Mite Levels and viral loads.  Need to treat your bees.

Understanding Varroa is essential.  Look for additional lessons here on our blog.  Based on what I am learning now…we need to be treating mite loads NOW!

  • Food and Nutrition

Check food stores by hefting or weigh.  Hefting by lifting the back of the hive is an easy way to determine your food stores.  If you notice smell in the fall it is Golden Rod and Aster.  Be sure your hive does not get honey bound.  Need to be checking our honey stores and making sure the hive does not become honey bound (no room for eggs and brood).  Use of pollen substitute or pollen patties a good idea.

  • Queen/colony failure

Should have a fairly solid brood pattern going on.  Make sure your queen is present.  Lots of Queen failures this time of year.  Requeen if necessary.  Combine hives or cull dinks (crappy colony…it is a loss)  Reduce unused space, empty boxes/frames properly stored.  .remove dead outs and unused equipment from apiary.

Empty Frames – use  paramoth crystals. ( I just ordered some from Amazon.)

  • Disease and other pests

Be on the lookout for other pests including the small hive beetle, wax moths, hornets, and wasps.

Winter Management

  • only inspect on days with ambient temperature over 55 degrees.  Limit to 15 minutes or less
  • check food stores. Add pollen patties, fondant, granulated sugar, frames of honey, pollen as needed.
  • 2:1 syrup if you have consecutive days above 55.  Bees will not eat cold sugar syrup.

 

 


Posted August 30, 2017 by Scott Griffin. (Mr. G) in category Uncategorized

About the Author

Elementary Teacher (37 years retired), Photographer, Storyteller, Bee Keeper. Started keeping bees with my grandson when he was 3 years old. It is something we enjoy learning and doing together. Proud member of the Gaston County Beekeepers Association, North Carolina Beekeepers Association. Graduate of the Penn State Beekeeping School. We are all about the bees first. The honey is simply their way of saying thank you!🐝🐝🐝

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